Ryan Powers, a second-year associate, was fired by Davis Polk & Wardwell after he expressed intentions to publish an article on government surveillance. He was warned that his writings violated the firm's policies which allowed broad control over employee speech. Powers asserted that his concerns about civil liberties were crucial and condemned Big Law for hypocritically maintaining neutrality while representing politically significant clients. He criticized the industry's growing influence on limiting lawyers' rights to free expression beyond their workplace.
It isn't just about one firm. It's about Big Law: an industry increasingly beholden to power, where employers are quietly deciding what their lawyers are allowed to say.
I believed the issues I was raising mattered - and I rejected the idea that writing about fundamental rights and democracy was somehow wrong.
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